M is for Manipulate
by Romantic By Nature
Summary: Manipulation was just a fun game from her...she had, after all, learned from the best. But as fate would have it, the heir to the Quest clan has a fortunate (or unfortunate) chance encounter with the gang. As the story unfolds, who is the enemy and who is the friend? Who was lying and who was simply being manipulated?
1. The Arrangement

**Author's Note: Just a few notes. I'm changing the ages of the characters because I personally don't think they look like a bunch of 14 and 15 year olds.  
**

**Yusuke/Kuwabara - 18  
**

**Kurama - 19  
**

**and most of the other characters are demons so that doesn't really matter.  
**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Yu Yu Hakusho (obviously), just the random stuff I make up.  
**

* * *

Mikami is one of the most well-known cities in the Demon World, or Makai. It lies in the Gandara territory of the Demon world, ruled over by Yomi. Located beside Mirage Lake, a giant horse-shoe shaped lake that is said to create mirages to lower-level demons, who have the misfortune of drinking its water, to lure them to an icy death, Mikami is surrounded on three sides by water. There is only one way in, and one way out.

To the naive traveler, Mikami appears to be a busy hub of travel – where "treasure collectors" gather to share tales and swap goods. However, no one in the Makai is that naïve or innocent. Mikami is the center of the black market world. "Treasure collectors", or as they are more commonly known, thieves, gather here to barter, drink, steal some more, and try to make a profit off of their stolen goods. Dirty businessmen from the human world come here for their own corrupt means. Hitman for hire lurk in the shadows of the numerous bars. Prostitutes, or as they like to be called "concubines", prey on drunk men in the dark.

All in all, Mikami is one of the more well-known cities in the Makai. And even more well-known is the clan of demons that runs the city – the Quest clan. Terrifying demons with the even more terrifying ability to create something out of nothing – making them invaluable to the black market business.

Although the city possesses modern technology: television, phones, transportation; the city looks old – Japanese style buildings, cobble stone streets, dim street lamps – rather romantic, don't you agree? It is broken up into four sections: the main section is aptly named the "Circle Market". It is located in the smack dab center of the city. It is a large open space, in a circle shape, where most vendors set up shop and sell their goods. Along the outskirts of the market are all of the city's restaurants and bars where most of the under the table deals are handled.

The second section is to the east of the Circle Market, it is called the "DC" or the "Dirty Corner." The DC is where the shanty apartments and hotels are located, as well as where most of the concubines and hitmen can be found. The poorer residents of Mikami dwell here.

The third section of Mikami is to the west of the Circle Market, it is called Horizon. It is where the middle class lives, as well as where most of the legitimate businesses (blacksmith, bakery, candlemaking) are located.

The last and most exclusive section of Mikami is to the north of the Circle Market. A most exquisite golden fence surrounds it, 10 feet high with uncuttable golden bars with fleur-de-lis at each tip. Beyond the golden gates lies Magnolia, named for the abundance of gorgeous Magnolia trees that line the neighborhood. It is where the Quest clan lives. Other rich and powerful demons live here as well, only through invite from the Quest clan, of course.

The Quest clan runs very similar to the human mafia-type groups. There is a main family, run by one patriarch or matriarch. The current patriarch of the Quest clan is Yarrow, a high A-class demon who has lead the Quest clan to become the power house it is known to be. His brothers and sisters all hold high positions within the clan. There are many, many more members of the clan – it is around 200 strong, and their Quest culture flourishes under Yarrow's reign, which is why no one has tried to overthrow him.

The Quest clan has the interesting power to create something from nothing, but it is not without it's limits. Each Quest child has the ability to only create a few types of things – for some, it's precious metals, for others it can be anything from explosives to water. Each Quest member specializes in something specific, they cannot create everything.

Yarrow and his wife, Magnolia (for whom the city was named for), had a single child - a daughter. Our story starts with finally reaching an appropriate age to marry.

* * *

Faint murmurs and the occasionally word were all that could heard from behind the partition. Through the thin rice paper screen, three figure's outlines could be seen. Two were shaking hands, exchanging excited words and amicable laughs. The third was sitting quietly, not daring to make a word out of turn.

It was a big day for the Quest clan, their clan leader, Yarrow was choosing a fiancée for his only daughter. Marriage into such a high position was a difficult task – Yarrow had to find someone powerful enough to not only keep power within the clan, but also someone powerful enough to head up the black market. It wasn't an easy position to fill – but with the position came immeasurable fame and fortune. Oh yes, being the patriarch of the Quest clan had so many benefits which is why selecting a fiancée for his only daughter proved to be the daunting task.

However, the day had arrived. Finally.

And as Yarrow's only daughter sat just outside the partition, hands fidgeting as she grew impatient, the deal had finally been struck.

"Bluebell," Yarrow called, his voice, though friendly, demanded respect.

The girl stood, careful not to trip in her haste – she was wearing a formal kimono for the occasion, it'd be a shame to tear it.

She stood about 5'6", her bountiful fair blonde hair (normally falling to just past her shoulder blades) was pinned in a formal bun on the lower right side of her neck, a few strategically places strands framing her face. Her skin was just barely sun-kissed, just enough to show that she ventured outdoors, but not too tan to suggest that she worked outdoor labor. She had well shaped brows, and though her lips were pink from her biting them, they puckered in a most appealing way that made up for her lack of check, she was a modest 'B'.

The thing that stood out the most about the girl were her eyes. They weren't deep blue like the ocean's depths, nor were they a light shining blue like the sky – they were the most unusual shade of cornflower blue. Not so different that it looked unnatural, but not so similar to the typical blue where it didn't stand out. No, her eyes were unique, and the cornflower blue color is what prompted her mother to name her Bluebell, after one of her favorite flowers.

Sliding open the partition, she lowered her eyes as she stepped into the room, making sure to mind her manners in front of her father while he performed business.

"You called?" she asked, mildly – a stark change from her usual personality.

"Ah, yes, yes. Mr. Horikawa, I'd like you to meet my daughter, Bluebell."

The girl met Mr. Horikawa's gaze and bowed deeply to show her respect. "It's a pleasure to meet you, sir."

Mr. Horikawa seemed like a nice enough man, once dark hair now peppered with a gray here and there, and a relatively kind face. Hopefully his son would look as kind as he did.

"Bluebell, dear, I'd like you to meet your fiancée-"

Bluebell turned, her eyes falling upon the third figure in the room. Tall, dark and handsome, but frightening all the same. His dark eyes met hers, a smirk working its way onto his features.

"Karasu."

Bluebell met his gaze, a chill running down her spine. "Pleasure to meet you," she stated quickly, almost forgetting her manners.

"Trust me, the pleasure is all mine," he said. The way he looked at her was unlike anything she had seen before. It was like he wanted to rip a bite right off of her, and she could do was stand there and smile while her stomach twisted into an uncomfortable knot.


	2. The Fiancee

**Disclaimer: I do not own Yu Yu Hakusho.**

* * *

**Chapter 2**

"Come now, Mr. Horikawa, let's finish up the necessary paperwork and let these two get better acquainted. We still have much to discuss," Yarrow said, guiding Mr. Horikawa out of the room and towards his private study. There, the two would discuss their children's futures over drinks.

Bluebell's gaze fell back onto Karasu, her once modest expression cold and calculating, masking her unease. She had heard about him before through gossip shared between her and her friends. At the boys' school (it is Quest tradition that boys and girls go to separate schools) a boy, just a little older than them had already discovered his materialization form. A rare feat for a demon of their age – for one would have to work their way up to a B-rank to discover what thing they were able to create.

And his materialization form certainly sparked everyone's interest – explosives.

Of course her father would choose Karasu to be the heir, he was already considered to be a prodigy. He could easily contribute to the strength held by the head family. And his power would pose as a problem to Bluebell.

You see, although her father was dead-set on having a man succeed him as head of the family, Bluebell was determined to make sure she succeeded him.

She had snuck into countless of her father's meeting and backdoor business deals. All of her father's employees (low level demons from the DC) treated her with the utmost respect, and she had witnesses her father "taking care" of business deals gone wrong.

She was perfectly capable of succeeding the family – she was business minded and wasn't afraid to get her hands dirty to get whatever she wanted. But her father could never see it that way, too wrapped up in tradition to see what was best for the family.

Karasu noticed her scrutinizing gaze, and spread his arms as if presenting himself to her. "Do you like what you see, Miss Bluebell?" he asked.

Bluebell was caught off guard by the question, a bewildered expression evident on her face until she quickly regained composure. "Well of course, you are my fiancée after all. And I am very pleased that my father chose someone with your strength, your reputation is well known here in Mikami," she replied politely, it was bad for business to be impolite. And he was her fiancée, for now, and she would never tarnish her father's name by being impolite.

He chuckled deeply, another shiver running up her spine as he stepped forward. His black boots clicked softly against the wooden floor as he approached her. He stood a good 7 or 8 inches taller than her, towering over the Quest heiress.

His hand shot out, quicker than her eyes could follow, grabbing the back of her head and forcing her to look straight up at him. She winced in pain, her neck crying out in protest as he jerked her muscles awkwardly. Her cornflower blue gaze met his violet one.

"I like your name," he mused darkly, turning her head slowly, taking in all of her delicate features. She tried to remove her head from his grasp, but he simply tightened his grip, she was powerless with him. "Bluebell… Blue. My favorite emotion, it's only fitting that my fiancée would be named so."

For the first time since meeting her new fiancée, she finally felt fear. Not discomfort or annoyance, but fear. As her eyes were forced to meet his, all she could see was lust. Not lust for her, but a lust for ultimate power and control. And with that lust, just a tinge of insanity. And that made him absolutely terrifying.

He finally let go of her head, and she realized that she had been holding her breath. Gasping for air in his now overwhelming power over her, she quickly bowed and exited the room, his dark laughter following her as she left.

She didn't get too far, however. Before she knew what had happened, she was forcefully shoved into the wall, losing the air in her lungs.

With shaky breaths she realized her position. With just one hand pressed against her neck (not too tightly to injure her, but tight enough to immobilize her) and the other on the wall beside her head, Karasu lowered his head until they were eye level.

Once again she was forced to meet his gaze. It wasn't anger, like she was expecting, but a sick amusement – he was relishing the power he held over her.

"I don't remember giving you permission to leave, my sweet dove," he cooed.

She hated him, absolutely hated him. Were this any other person, she would have killed them by now (she was trained by her father after all), but it was different with Karasu. She couldn't touch a single damn hair on his head – he was her fiancée and now, once the paperwork was complete, the main family heir.

It wasn't that she didn't want to kill him. She simply couldn't for her own sake. If she were to kill him, she would be disowned by the family for killing their heir, and her hopes of someday succeeding the family would crumble. No, she would have to figure out a different way to get rid of him. A way that no one could trace back to her.

His dark chuckle brought her out of her angry thoughts and back to her present situation. He moved closer to her ear, his breathe tickling the sensitive part of her neck, making her squirm. "That's not how my fiancée should act. Now, I'd like to hear you beg for forgiveness," he whispered.

Before she could muster up a forced apology, the hand that was holding her neck grabbed her chin and forced her to the side, and he promptly bit into her neck.

The explosion of fire that erupted in her came as a complete shock. She gasped, she had never experienced this before.

"I still don't hear my apology," he growled, nipping at her neck until he nipped at a spot that made her twitch. Smirking against her skin, he bit into the most tender part of her neck.

He was rewarded immediately with a moan. Bluebell's fingers dug into the wall behind her for support. "I apologize," she moaned breathlessly, unable to control her voice.

As soon as the apology was out of her mouth, he released his hold on her, stepping back as the flustered girl composed herself.

"You know what I like most about you? I like that behind your polite words and mannerisms, you utterly hate the power I have over you. And that no matter how much you may try, you can never over power me... And most of all, I love that you hate me."

And with that last parting thought, he left Bluebell.

Ashamed and disgusted with herself, she straightened out her kimono and removed her hair from the bun, retying it over the left side of her neck to hide the nasty mark Karasu had left on her previously unmarred skin. She would never allow for any of the servants or fellow clan members to see her in a moment of weakness – if you showed weakness you would lose respect.

Her father never showed weakness, and trained her to never show it either. He told her many times that if subordinates were to ever see you in a moment of weakness, the idea that they were stronger could creep into their mind. If they thought they were stronger than you, they would try to gain power. If they tried to gain power, chaos would ensue and the Quest clan could fall into shambles.

It might have been a slightly paranoid view, but her father's leadership in the clan had never once been contested. And being the daddy's girl that she was, Bluebell nearly worshipped her father.

She walked quickly through the halls of their manor until she was safely back in her room. She locked the door, stripped out of her kimono and crawled underneath the satin sheets of her bed. Once underneath her sheets and hidden from the world she allowed the angry tears to finally spill out. Silent sobs racked her body.

How dare he make her feel this way. She had never met anyone who was able to manipulate her emotions the way Karasu had just done. She felt like his puppet, he knew just what to say and what to do to evoke a variety of emotions within her. One moment she was furious, the next frightened beyond belief, and then she felt as if she was in some sort of animal-like heat. She hated it. She hated his power over her. And she hated him. She would find a way to get rid of him, one day.

* * *

The day after, Karasu left on a journey to pick up an ancient relic as per Yarrow's request. The journey was only supposed to last about a month, but along the way Karasu ran into some trouble… That trouble being the Toguro brothers. He put up a good fight, but in the end was nearly left for dead. Instead of killing him though, they recognized his potential and forcefully recruited him into their group.

Karasu was humiliated by the Toguro brothers, instead of letting him die a warrior's death they treated him with pity by letting him live. He joined their group solely for the purpose of growing strong enough to one day kill them.

He had been gone for around a year, so when he stepped foot inside Mikami the word spread like wildfire.

Bluebell had been practicing her materialization when a quick knock at the door interrupted her training. She wiped the sweat from her brow, she had finally discovered what she could create a month ago. Now it was a matter of stamina and skill level.

Opening the door, one of her servants told her of Karasu's return. Bluebell thanked the servant before closing the door.

Her mouth had suddenly gone dry, and she rushed through the training room, into her room and to the sink in her restroom. Splashing some water onto her face she glared into the mirror. She had been hoping that Karasu would not return, it would have made her life much easier.

She had run through many mental scenarios in the first few months of how to get rid of her fiancée, but each and every scenario would fail. But with each passing month her hopes that their engagement would be terminated grew stronger. But now that hope was shattered.

"Breathe, Bell, breathe," she told herself. She knew that she could be rather dramatic at times.

~I'll just have to think of another way. There is always another way~ she reminded herself.

There was another knock at the door. "Come back later, I'm hopping into the shower," she called, not wanting to be bothered by another servant. She peeled off her training top and leggings, only in her sports bra and underwear when she heard a voice.

"Well, I came at just the right time then," an amused voice answered.

Bluebell swung around, startled. "You!" she cried, grabbing the nearest towel and wrapping herself in it. How had he gotten here so quickly?

Karasu leaned against the door frame, his amused smirk hidden by a mask that Bluebell had never seen before. "Is that any way to greet your fiancée?" he asked in amusement.

She ignored his question, "How dare you just waltz in here when I clearly said I was getting into the shower!"

He scoffed. "Drop the lady-like act, it doesn't suit you."

She said nothing and glared at him.

"Besides, if I could get you to moan me an apology last time, just imagine what I could do to you now," he stated. It wasn't meant to be seductive, it seemed much more like a threat. Like he would tear her to pieces in ways that made her stomach twist with pleasure. She had no doubt that his form of love was a painful one.

"Are you back in Mikami for good?" she asked, chiding herself for her dirty thoughts.

"No, we are leaving."

"We? Who gave you the crazy idea that I would go anywhere with you?" she asked, bristling.

This angered the normally calm demon, his demonic energy spiking. He ripped off his mask, and Bluebell stepped back, unsure of what to expect. His hair changed from pin straight and black to a wavy blonde, which would have been funny to Bluebell had his energy not spiked again when he removed it.

The power was overwhelming. It took all of her effort to keep from bowing under the pressure. Where had all this power suddenly come from?

"It wasn't a request, Bell. We are leaving at noon tomorrow," he told her, restraining some of his energy to allow the female demon to breath again.

"Where?" she asked politely in fear of angering him again.

"The Dark Tournament."

"But I'm not competing, why would you want me to come with you?" she asked, genuinely confused.

A sadistic look passed over his features, "Simple, my dear. I simply grew tired of being surrounded my men."

She pursed her lips disdainfully in spite of the array of not so pure thoughts that raced through her mind. Karasu knew it, too. For he approached the tower wrapped girl.

Bell clung to her towel tighter as he approached, but he simply found it more amusing. Grabbing a handful of hair with one hand, he brought their faces only mere inches apart from each other. With his free hand he ripped the towel from her, throwing it to the side. Cornflower blue eyes widened in shock, her hands trying to cover herself.

He laughed, grabbing each of her wrists and pulling her arms away from her. Pushing her to the bed, he crouched over her, her arms pinned. He moved to suck of her neck once more, but stopped short, amused to find that her body arched ever so slightly in anticipation. She hated how her body ached for him.

A deep chuckled escaped from his lips, earning a glare from the bothered heiress. She wrenched her hands from his grasp and grabbed his face, their lips soon crashing together.

* * *

Bluebell woke up the next morning, bruised, sore but satisfied. She pulled the cover over her face again, shame washing over her as she thought about the night before. She had never witnessed someone so downright controlling, and she hated that she had loved every second of it.

She groaned, throwing back her covers and hopping into the shower. She had to pack for the day, and quickly.

Throwing on a pair of tight, dark wash jeans, a white fitted tank top, and a red blazer she combed out her still damp long blonde hair. She had covered up most of the bruises and scratches that littered her body, thankfully he had left no marks on her neck, and deemed herself presentable to the public. She had finished packing a short while ago, and a servant was waiting by the door for her to leave.

She met Karasu out front, a car waiting to pick the both of them up. She said goodbye to both her mom and dad as Karasu opened the car door for her, and she nodded her thanks as she entered the car. The servants loaded the luggage as Karasu got in, and in no time the pair were leaving Magnolia.

She must have dozed off during the ride, because in no time the car had stopped at the port that would take them to Hanging Neck Island. Even from the port she could see the giant stadium looming in the distance.

It would certainly be the start of a new chapter in Bell's life, she just didn't know it yet.


	3. The Gem

**The Gem**

* * *

The ferry ride was short, Bluebell was left alone for the most part. Even from the deck of the ship she could hear the roaring of the stadium crowd. Her father had always told her of the dark tournament, he went to it every year to meet with his main business partners to bet, drink and make money. He had never let Bluebell attend though, claiming it was dangerous for an unwed demoness.

But here she was finally, at one of the most dangerous tournaments in all of the Makai. All of the most powerful demons in one island… each team determined to see the demise of the other.

Bluebell's grip tightened on the railing as an obvious idea struck her, if someone in the tournament could kill her fiancée… she would be free.

How had she not thought of this earlier?! It was so simple, she could never be traced back to it – it was the dark tournament after all, most demons somehow ended up getting killed some way or another.

The biggest problem was that her fiancee's team was the strongest in the competition, and was highly favored to win. She didn't really care which team won or lost, but she'd have to find someone with the potential to defeat Karasu. He had to not only be strong, but crafty. Karasu loved his mind games and getting into his opponents heads, someone capable of withstanding those games would be hard to find.

The ferry's bell sounded, announcing to its passengers that they would soon be docking, the bell's sound ringing out through the crisp ocean air.

An arm draped itself around Bell's shoulder, the hand brushing against the center of her collarbone. It was more a gesture of possession rather than any form of intimacy, but for once Bell didn't mind. Demons poured out of the ship's interior, littering the deck. They could smell a female in their presence, but once they saw Karasu they instantly walked in another direction. No one dared to mess with the infamous Team Toguro.

And as much as Bell hated to admit it, she felt safer with Karasu nearby. Yes, she was a powerful demon. And yes, she family name was well known, feared and respected. But she didn't have very good control over her materializations, and a strong young demon wouldn't care about her family name if she were to be alone.

Cornflower blue eyes drifted up to her fiancée's handsome face. He would soon be dead if she had anything to do with it. His gaze met hers and she quickly looked away. He was smart, and she didn't want him to catch onto her ploy.

"Are you nervous at all, Karasu?" she asked as the boat pulled into the dock.

"No," came the simple reply.

The platform was lowered, and demons hurriedly rushed off of the boat, eager to get into the stadium. Karasu lingered, his hand tightening on her shoulder as she attempted to follow suit with everyone else.

"We don't leave along side those filth," he explained, Belle curly nodded in agreement.

Once the demons were off, his hands slipped off of her shoulder and were shoved into the pockets of his long black coat. He walked to the platform, keeping in front of the blonde girl who followed behind him.

She could sense an alarmingly strong demonic aura as she stepped off of the boat, peering from behind Karasu to see three figures waiting for them.

"You're late," the tallest one said, his voice deep and powerful.

"My apologies. I had an.. errand to attend to," came Karasu's calm reply. Bluebell pursed her lips, careful to not show her inner fury.

"Ahh, and who's this little morsel behind you?" the smallest one asked, his voice alone disturbed Bell.

"I –" she started, but was quickly grabbed by the back of the neck and forced into a deep bow.

"I don't remember giving you permission to speak to them," he said, his voice the same (ever infuriating) relaxed tone.

The small one cackled in sheer delight, clapping his hands together. "How marvelous!"

"She is my fiancée," he said.

"Ahh~ the Quest heiress. Quite a submissive creature," he laughed, tears pricking in the corner of Bell's eyes. She had never been so publicly humiliated.

Perhaps it would just be better for her to be submissive, it would save her a lot of pain. ~What?! What am I thinking!?~ she thought in dismay. She had never once considered being the submissive demoness she was expected to be. In fact she prided herself on her stubbornness. Yet, a few days with this… monster… and she had reconsidered her position. It was pathetic and she knew it.

He was getting to her, working his magic to change her for his own benefit. Well she had caught on this time, luckily. She'd have to be more careful, he was definitely good at this manipulation business – almost as good as her father.

"There is the last ship," the tall, muscular one stated.

Bluebell tore her gaze from the oddly shaped muscles on the man's body to look back at the ocean. A large ship with a circular arena in the middle was approaching the dock. Bell hadn't noticed it, mainly because it was oddly silent.

The team, plus Bell, waited for the ship to dock. And when it finally did a sinister grin worked its way onto the large one's face. "Team Urameshi…"

Bluebell tried to get a look at the team that got him so excited, but Karasu stepped in front of her.

* * *

Thirty minutes later, they had finally been shown to their rooms. Thankfully, each member of Team Toguro had his own separate room. Bell wasn't keen on spending the night in a room that was connected to that short creep, so it was one thing to be thankful for.

She placed her back in the corner, not wanting to unpack just yet. She was hoping that her parents would come, as usual, and that she could seek refuge in their room. Until then, she'd just live out of her suitcase.

According to the staff member that showed them to their room, all of the teams were staying somewhere inside the hotel. Maybe now would be the best time to gather information on this Team Urameshi. If the team could catch the interest of the team leader, then they would certainly by very strong.

Karasu had stepped out for a bit, probably to meet with the rest of his team. Which meant Bell didn't have much time. She wanted to be there and back before Karasu returned.

Slipping out of the room, she trotted down the hallway, feeling around for any particularly strong auras.

However, there were many powerful demons in the hotel. None seemed to be nearly powerful enough to stand up to Karasu, much less the big one, which she had learned was the Younger Toguro brother (how silly of her to have not put two and two together).

One presence stood out to her though, it was… different. It was more pure. It was what she imagined spirit energy to feel like, which meant that whoever possessed that must be human. But why would humans be participating in the tournament?

Sure, she understood human's betting on matches and sponsoring teams to make money, the desire for power and money was simply the demon inside each human. And the want for power and money certainly brought out the worst in humanity here, that inner demon rearing it's ugly, ugly head.

Her father loved working with humans here. They were so simple to understand and thus simple to manipulate. Such pitiful creatures in her opinion. Demons were driven by power as well, but as least most of them would never stoop as low as a human would to gain it.

Or so she thought, she had been raised with a rather biased influence.

She wanted to check out this human presence, it was interesting to her. There were many demon presences with them, too. Perhaps something interesting was going on?

Along the way to the human's room, she passed another room with strong demon auras. She repressed her energy as best she could and peered inside. A demon with red hair and pointy ears, a muscular man, a white haired man and a blue demon with some odd markings all sat around a table discussing something in hushed tones.

Why they would leave the door open she had no idea, but she tried to eavesdrop nonetheless.

She could catch nothing from their conversation, and gave up. She continued on until she neared the source of the human spirit energy. But when she arrived, it appeared to be at a bad time. Two teams seemed to be talking heatedly.

She cursed her bad luck. She just wanted to see who this Team Urameshi was, and she couldn't do anything. Being discovered was not an option, so she turned tail and jogged back to her room.

Her heart nearly stopped when she saw the door ajar… Karasu had returned before her. Holding her head high, hoping he wouldn't mind that she had left, she entered the room.

It was dark, she was certain she had left the lights on. Was this just another game for him? Fear tactics? Hiding somewhere in the dark for her, waiting to pounce… well it wasn't going to work. Not this time.

She strolled over to the bathroom, flickering on the light.

"!" she gasped, jumping as Karasu seemed to materialize from the blackness. He grabbed her throat, lifting her off of the ground.

She clawed at his hands, kicking her feet at him.

"Where were you, my dead?" he asked, sickly sweet.

"T-t-training," she choked out.

He let go of her, and she fell unceremoniously to the marble bathroom floor. She coughed, rubbing her neck and glaring up at the demon.

"I can smell that you have been around other demons…"

Oh no... She needed to come up with an excuse, and fast. " Well, of course. We are on an island full of demons," came the snarky response.

His demon energy started to build, she could feel it building slowly. That was definitely the wrong answer. "I mean. I wanted to train, but there were just too many other demons around. I didn't want to attract attention," the lie spilled so fluidly from her that she herself almost believed it.

He seemed to buy it, luckily. Too interested in her training to point out any flaws in her logic. "You discovered your materialization form."

"Yes."

"And...?" he prompted, she could see the excitement in his eyes. He was hoping that she'd inherit her father's materialization.

"Gems and metals," she finally told him after a moment's hesitation. She didn't want him to find out so soon. Her materialization was not only powerful, but insured an endless amount of wealth. If he was possessive now, she couldn't imagine what he'd be like now.

He grabbed her by the shoulders. "What can you create so far?" he asked, he knew as well as she did that her power was hard to master.

She cupped her hands and closed her eyes. Her energy level shot up, her blonde hair swirling about her. A small twinkling light appeared in the palm of her hand. Radiating light until her energy suddenly faltered. She wobbled, her legs giving beneath her.

Karasu caught the girl. He picked her up and placed her into the king sized bed. Their room was large, but sparse. A king size bed in the middle, two dressers, a vanity mirror for her, and a desk. He removed her shoes, and placed her feet back under the covers.

She was out cold, spending all of her energy on the gem clutched tightly in her left hand. Her long blonde hair was fanned out around her, her bangs that curled delicately around the sides of her face matted with sweat.

He reached for her hand and pried it open, removing the gem. He held it up to the light, a grin forming behind his mask. The diamond was slightly bigger than a marble, but was so pure and clean cut that it sparkled with more brilliance than any diamond he had seen before.

Yes, this was the power of the Quest heiress. With more training, she could produce even more wonderful things, and he would certainly be the strongest leader of the black market in history.

He pocketed the exquisite gem, before turning off the lights. Tomorrow was the first day of the tournament. It was certainly going to be an interesting day.


	4. The First Round

**Author's Note: Thank you so so so much to whoever it was that reviewed! It literally made my day :) **

**The First Round**

* * *

Someone was shaking her shoulder, but she didn't want to get up. Rolling away from whomever was trying to wake her up she nestled underneath the covers.

Bluebell was drifting back to sleep when the covers were removed from the bed. "Heyy," she grumbled, sitting up. A drink was shoved into her hands, and she looked down at it perplexed.

"Drink it," Karasu said.

She sniffed the oddly colored drink (it was a strange muddy-green). Wrinkling her nose at the offensive smell she shook her head. "I can't stomach that."

"Do I need to force it down your throat? Drink it, it will help you train."

She had no doubt that Karasu would take pleasure in shoving the liquid down her throat, so she sucked it up and tipped the contents into her mouth. She gagged a couple of times, holding a hand to her mouth. She seriously thought she was going to throw it up, but after a few empty gags she could finally breathe. Grabbing the water that had been placed next to her bed she drank it greedily, desperate to remove the taste from her mouth.

But he wasn't lying, after a few moments she felt a sudden surge of energy.

"Why do you want me to train? Won't I just attract attention this early in the morning?" she asked, the clock on the wall reading 6 am.

"No, you'll be training in here so no one will bother you here," he explained. Bluebell held her sigh, she should have known better than to think she could train out in the open.

He continued, "And you will train so that you can master your materialization sooner and be of use to the business."

She scowled. He raised his brows expectantly, waiting for a response. But she remained silent, a twisted smile forming behind Karasu's mask.

"I'm expecting something better than this by the time I come back," he said, tossing the diamond onto the bed next to her. He promptly left, leaving Bluebell to wonder where he always disappeared to.

She crawled out of the bed, only to lie on the carpeted floor. She held the gem straight up in the air, rotating it between her fingers, liking the way is sparkled. It was definitely her finest work to date, no flaws, perfect clarity… a gorgeous stone. She knew that she had a lot of room to improve; she could create gem stone sculptures, golden swords, and crowns, anything she put her mind to if she could become skilled enough to do so.

But for now, baby steps. While most materializations only took seconds, her form was one of the few powers recorded that took time and work into each creation. She couldn't just whip out a golden sword from thin air, no way. Once she had taken the time to create a sword though, she could whip that specific sword from thin air, but she wasn't close to being that powerful yet.

"What to make… what to make," she mused. She'd like to make an obsidian sculpture of a hand flipping off Karasu, but that probably wouldn't end well.

She thought of simple shapes that wouldn't take too much concentration to form. "A star?' she asked herself, sitting up. Yeah, a star would be perfect! It was an easy form, just a five point star, and then she could focus on making it out a new materical.

She got to work. Breathe in… breathe out… in… out…

With each breath her demonic energy would ebb and flow. Breathe in… ebb…breath out… her power surged. Breathe in… breathe out! Her head snapped back, reaching the height of her power.

That drink certainly helped, usually she would have collapsed by now. Her eyes snapped open revealing white, colorless eyes. She blinked a few times, unsure of what she was seeing.

Surrounding her were thousands of sparkling strips of energy, dancing around her fingertips. Endless shades of purples, reds, blues and more swirled about her, willing to bend and change into any form she desired. All she needed to do was visualize a color, and her energy would match it.

Bell felt something hot in her hand, and she nearly dropped it in shock. In her palm was the physical manifestation of energy, and what would soon be a gem or metal. The size of the ball of energy in her hand was entirely dependent on how powerful she was. And seeing that she was still new at this (it was her first time producing a gem on purpose and not by accident), she was unsure of what to do.

The ball was no bigger than a tennis ball, a remarkable improvement in size from last night. It was proof that her power was growing, should she grow to be an S-class demon, perhaps she could create a palace from one giant ball of energy. But that was later, right now she was a low B-class demon, and for now a gem the size of a tennis ball would suffice.

Pinching the ball of energy with her thumb and index finger, she was surprised to find that it was like putty and could be shaped easily.

Working quickly, she could feel her body start to tire, she got to work on shaping the perfect star. She had always been gifted artistically, and it was easy for her to work the energy into a shimmering five-pointed star figure. Now she needed to pick a material, for it was still just blinding light for anyone other than Bluebell.

"Canary diamond. Yellow. Like the stars in picture books," she said to herself, her voice otherworldly to outside ears. The energy about her swirled into a million shades until they melded together into a brilliant pale yellow, fitting for a Canary Diamond. All at once the color around her crashed into the palm of her hand. She cried out, the heat was unbearable, but she wasn't able to let go, it was holding her there.

The colorful energy continued to pour into the diamond, and once the last remaining streaks of yellow energy melded into the diamond Bluebell promptly collapsed, all of her energy drained from her body.

The diamond she held in her hand rolled out of her grip, lying beside the unconscious girl. Sparkling brilliantly in the faint fluorescent lighting. It was a beautiful gem, perfectly crafted.

* * *

She wasn't asleep for long. The slamming of a door roused her from her spot on the floor. She stood up a bit too quickly, her vision going black for a few seconds. Steadying herself, she waited a few moments until she regained all of her senses.

"Ugh," she groaned, feeling completely weak.

A cup lay on the floor next to her, "Recovery" was the only thing written on the note attached to it. Picking it up and drinking it, not really caring for taste, she looked for her diamond. It was gone.

"That bastard," she hissed, clenching her fist. A sharp pain shot through her hand, and she looked down at it. It was tightly wrapped up, but she could see the faint bloody outline of a giant star-shaped burn mark marred palm of her left hand. "Great," she muttered, slowly starting to feel better.

"Whatever he puts in those nasty drinks certainly works."

Looking to the clock she inwardly cursed, it was 10am, the matches had already started! She showered quickly and changed into black leggings, boots, a tight-fitted purple tank top and a dove gray cardigan that hung loosely by her hips.

Reapplying her hand wrappings as she jogged to the stadium, she arrived just in time to see one of the stupid humans get suspended in the air by a bunch of yo-yos.

"Tch, these are the buffoons the Toguro brothers were worried about?" she whispered incredulously. Whatever. It's not like she cared who they were worried about, she needed to find someone that would defeat Karasu. And if the younger Toguro believed this was the team that would make it to the finals, she'd find someone to support.

The tall idiot was certainly not that person.

"Please, please, please let there be someone who can stand up to him" she prayed, waiting for the next fight to start.

"Next fight! Kurama vs. Roto!" the cat lady yelled into the microphone.

A blue man and a taller man with long red hair stepped into the ring. Bluebell cocked her head to the side, the red headed man had a very interesting aura. He was human, she could smell it all the way from here, but he had a demon's aura.

"Kill him!" the chant rang out throughout the stadium.

Bluebell descended the stairs quickly, she reached the bottom in no time. She leaned against the stonewall, eager to watch the fight commence.

Kurama was clearly overpowering Roto, his skill and speed level leagues above the ugly blue demon.

But just as we was about to deal the final blow with his beautiful and fragrant rose whip, he froze.

"What's he doing?" she wondered aloud, trying to figure out was going on. She squinted, and saw that Kurama was staring intently at something in Roto's hand. Shifting her eyes, she noticed an odd device in the blue demon's hands. She didn't know what the two were saying, they had been exchanging heated words for a while.

Suddenly Roto started to beat Kurama, the latter making no moves to defend himself. After one particularly hard hit, Bluebell covered her mouth in shock, wondering how he could just allow himself to get beaten so badly.

Kurama stood, and flicked something at the demon who laughed.

There was no way Kurama could win. He wouldn't even defend himself. But fate would prove her wrong. As Roto went to push the button, his hand froze. Kurama, in all of his wisdom, planted a Death Plant's seed in him.

Roto begged for mercy, nearly on the verge of tears. But Kurama wasn't feeling merciful, quickly killing the demon.

Bluebell was impressed. Kurama was calm and collected during the entire fight, never once letting the blue demon into his head.

"Him!" she exclaimed. He was the perfect person to go against Karasu. If anyone could kill her fiancée, it was him. A twisted smile worked its way onto her face, if she could help Team Urameshi into the finals and have Karasu face off against Kurama… she could finally get rid of Karasu.

The next fights was interesting, the shortest member of their team, and demon to boot, was certainly a fearsome fighter.

He had incredible speed, too. She could barely keep track of him. And the power…. The dragon of the darkness flame was not something to be messed with, and his ability to summon it was impressive.

However, he lacked something that would make him capable of defeating Karasu. He angered too easily, was easily provoked. Karasu was a master at mind games, she knew that all too well, he'd get into the short man's head too easily. And once he got into your head, the fight would be lost.

No, Kurama was perfect for the job. Not this Hiei character. She just needed to find a way to get Karasu to notice him.

* * *

Their team had prevailed, and Kurama let out a soft sigh of relief. He was eager to return to the forest and train after staying behind to watch Team Toguro's match. The younger Toguro had been the only one to show up, saying he would take on the entire team at once. However, even with all of the other team attacking him, the younger Toguro brother defeated them all in no time.

Needless to say it was unsettling. Kurama had been watching carefully, trying to figure out some weak point in the younger Toguro's technique. But the match had been so quick that he never had the chance to.

He could sense that the other members had found their way back to the hotel room, but Kurama needed to let off some steam. Of course he had kept his composure during battle, but his match with Roto really rattled him.

He had not been expecting that his mother's safety would be threatened. It was different for him, to have someone he cared about. When he was Youko, he had no emotional ties. No enemy had something or someone to use against the infamous fox demon. But now… it was just so different.

He released his rose whip, the razor sharp thorns slicing through anything in its way. He struck again… and again.. and again. It was his own form of venting.

"Letting off steam?" a voice asked behind him.

Kurama whipped around, pinning the owner of the voice to a tree, whip held nearly against the person's neck.

His grip faltered for a moment, he had been expecting someone from one of the teams (he had seen all of the matches and knew most of the teams). Instead, he found himself pinning one of the most striking girls he had ever seen.

Long, shiny blonde hair that fell to her elbows, her bangs curling around each side of her face delicately. Her cornflower blue eyes shone with amusement, her dark, long eyelashes giving her the 'bedroom eyes'. Her pink lips curled in a smile.

"I mean no harm," she said, her finger tracing against her chest.

"Who are you? What do you want?" he asked carefully, he was not in the mood to be messed with.

"Me? Why I'm nothing more than a demoness, enjoying the… view, before I go back to being a captive," she mused, her eyes fluttering up to meet Kurama's emerald gaze.

"Give me a reason why I should believe you," he said skeptically.

She pursed her lips, and removed something on her hand. She held it out to Kurama, who looked down at the burn mark in shock.

"I was branded. Why would I want to hurt anyone else besides the man who did this to me?"

Obviously he was disgusted with whoever did this to her, but one question popped into his mind. "I believe you, but why did you come find me?"

She pushed the rose whip away from her neck, Kurama made no effort to stop her from doing so. She stepped closer to the redhead, who started to move back but she grabbed a fistful of his shirt and crashed her lips onto his.

Kurama had not been expecting that, and quickly stepped back from the girl. Her eyes fluttered open, and a coy smile curved onto her features. The carnal side of him stirred, lusting for another touch from those plump lips, but his logical side reigned true.

He stepped back a bit more, confused by her actions.

She laughed melodically, enjoying every second of teasing him. Once again, she closed the space between them. She traced her finger from his chest up to his eat. Standing on tip toes, she whispered into his ear. "See you around," her breath causing the hair on the back of his neck to stand up.

She laughed, and walked back into the forest, in the direction of the hotel.

Kurama had never met a woman like that before. She had left him confused and completely intrigued.

It wasn't his business though, and he needed to focus on the tournament and not let some girl distract him.

He continued training, trying his best to forget the passionate fire left behind from her kiss.


	5. The Aftereffect

**A.N. I just wanted to seriously thank you guys who reviewed. I'm not joking when I saw you literally made my day and I really appreciate it!**

* * *

Bluebell was beside herself in excitement, her plan had worked so perfectly! She walked slowly, wrapping her hand back up as she moved along. Thank god her powers had burned her. "Brand me… hmph… I wouldn't be surprised if that sadistic bastard actually had," she mused. She could tell from that single fight between Kurama and Roto that the red-head was compassionate to a fault…

If she could play the "damsel in distress" she was certain that he would react just as she wanted him to – her "branding" would certainly strike a chord with the demon. He would try to forget about it, she could tell that he was trying his best to remain cold and aloof here. But his caring nature and kind heart would take over, he would try to figure out more about her…

And even though she hated playing the role of the 'powerless woman', in this case (as much as she hated to admit) she was somewhat living that role perfectly.

"Tchhh," he hissed, tightening the wrapping on her left hand. She hoped the burning would go down, it was rather painful for her – and she wasn't used to pain after living such a pampered life.

After nearing the hotel, she masked her demonic energy, not wanting any possible unwanted attention. She was careful to avoid the energy signals of Team Urameshi (having memorized them after their fight), she would run in with them soon enough.

She headed straight to her room, dreading, yet somewhat excited, for her next interaction with Karasu.

* * *

Karasu was waiting patiently. Not in the room, but right outside of the stadium.

He had been up in the press box, with Bluebell's father. Karasu wasn't the kind to be intimidated, but if anyone could put the demon at unease it was Yarrow.

He was an imposing figure, standing around 6'8", with a lean physique, but underneath his dapper suit was a fearsome strength. A strength that had led the Quest clan for centuries, completely uncontested. His salt and pepper hair was always neatly combed back, and his face always freshly shaven. He had intelligent, bright brown eyes that could always tell when someone was lying.

Karasu might have been chosen to take over the family one day due to his power, but that didn't mean Yarrow had any intention of stepping down any time soon. And this infuriated Karasu to no end. He wanted the power, and he didn't want to wait for it.

So while he waited patiently, pretending to be the respectful son-in-law, he started plotting. A way to get rid of Yarrow. It didn't matter if there were any links or not, it was common within clans for one power to usurp the next.

It was just a matter of figuring out how to do it. He had tried to get close to Yarrow, discover any daily routines he could exploit but the Quest leader was too smart. He had been leading this clan for generations – he had experienced paranoia and he had experience assassination attempts. But he had learned from them. He kept his loyal friends close and his daily routines guarded.

Yarrow saw right through Karasu's act, keeping him at arm's length from his life. He could see the desire for power in the younger demon's eyes, and admired it. He knew Karasu would lead the clan with an iron grip, but not for a while. Yarrow planned to retire in a couple hundred centuries, or whenever old age got the best of him.

He wouldn't be an easy target to take down, and Karasu knew it.

The only way to get to Yarrow, would be through his loyal servants – there were approximately ten of them. They were paid a hefty amount, and Karasu did not yet have the means to "buy" one of their loyalties (for loyalty lies wherever there is the most money).

He had found one servant, Drear, who could be easily bought. Drear had met the future heir outside of the stadium. He was an ugly demon – tall and lanky, he looked like his limbs had been stretched out too much for they were disproportionate to his torso. He had dull blue skin and vermillion eyes with snake-like slits.

Karasu held Bluebell's gems in his pocket, he would use them to buy Drear's loyalty.

"I want double the amount Master Yarrow pays me," Drear stated right off the bat. Karasu's eyes flashed dangerously, but Drear looked back at him smugly because he knew that Karasu needed him. A serpentine smile twisted onto his dusty blue features.

Karasu drew the canary diamond from his pocket, the fragile yellow star gem glistening in the palm of his hand. He could see the ugly demon's grin grow as he admired the gem. His elongated fingers went to reach for it, but Karasu placed it back into his pocket.

"I'm assuming the gem is enough then?" he inquired calmly.

Drear shrieked in laughter. "You think one pretty gem is enough?! Master pays me us five gems every two months. Double that and come talk to me. I won't say anything to Master, I dislike him anyway. He favors the others, finds my appearance disconcerting, judgmental bastard I never did anything to him… yet," he ended his tirade in a fit of laughter.

Karasu decided that once the deed was done he'd kill Drear. How dare he request so much, he should be shivering in Karasu's presence, but instead he was smug and talking down to him. But Karasu needed Drear's help to kill Yarrow, he'd comply for now.

"Fine, Ten it is. Meet me here, same time, tomorrow. We will discuss details"

Karasu was annoyed, and was emitting a dangerous aura as he walked back to his hotel room. Drear was annoying to no end, but he was necessary as was his fiancée. Karasu needed eight more gems from her, and he needed them soom. She would be unknowingly funding her dear father's assassination.

As he neared the hotel room, an odd smell caught his attention. It was the smell of another male demon.

Bluebell was in the shower when he entered the room, he could hear the water running. Entering the bathroom, the smell became even more pungent. The demon wasn't here, obviously, but he had been near Bluebell fairly recently.

Karasu opened the door to the shower, Bluebell cried out while she attempted to cover herself up.

"You nearly scared me to death! Wha—what the hell are you doing!?" she cried out indignantly as he pulled her forcefully out of the shower. He got close to her face… the smell of the male demon was strongest on her lips.

"Why do you smell of another demon?" he asked so calmly that he could feel the girl tremble.

"I don't know what you're talking about," she lied poorly, Karasu tightened his grip on the girl's slender arm.

"You smell of another demon," he stated again.

She shook her head, and Karasu's patience had worn out. He knew she was lying and wouldn't tolerate it from her. He gripped her neck, backing her into the closest wall. She tried to remove his hand, but he held firm. "I can smell him… on your lips. Why is that?" he asked, already knowing the answer.

She remained silent, diverting her eyes.

He snarled and threw her to the floor. She cried out, scurrying to grab a towel and fleeing into the room. But he was quickly behind her, pulling on her arm so roughly in the opposite direction that her shoulder popped out of its socket – her energy signal spiking in distress.

She screamed, and he threw her to the bed.

No one should ever dare touch his property. How dare anyone fucking touch her. She was his own private gem mine and no one else's. He would make sure she would think twice before sneaking off with some other demon again.

He pressed both of his hands onto her shoulders, purposefully irritating her popped shoulder socket even more. He could see tears being held back… she refused to cry in front of him, which he took as a challenge.

Karasu applied more and more pressure on her shoulder. He could feel her shaking in utter pain as her joints creaked unwillingly. She reached her breaking point. Tears streamed down her face, and he smirked.

He ripped the small towel that separated them, and his mouth crashed onto her hungrily. He would claim her as his territory.

* * *

Bluebell was lying on her back, a sheen of sweat covering her body. Tears poured out of her eyes in a mixture of pain and disgust. Karasu was on the phone with someone, she didn't know who. He talked in hushed tones, as if she was going to eavesdrop.

She stood, cradling her arm as best she could. It was so painful. So painful, it was all she could think about. Nothing could distract her from the pain, not even what she had just done in the bed with Karasu.

The water was still running in the shower. Maybe if she got in, he'd disappear like he always did.

Stepping under the warm water, she tried to relax, but found it impossible to do so. Her plan had worked so well – she had certainly gotten Karasu's attention. He would no doubt recognize the scent when he ran into Kurama. But she hadn't anticipated the absolute violence that followed.

She needed to pop her shoulder back into place… but she didn't know how to. She absolutely refused to ask Karasu for help, but she didn't know who else would help her.

She pressed her back onto the shower knob, and turned it off. Listening, she couldn't hear Karasu's soft murmuring – he must have left just as she had expected.

She returned to the room, using her foot to open the lid to her suitcase. Carefully she crouched down onto her knees, using her good hand to look for something that she could change into.

Finding a slip dress, she stepped into the dress and then carefully maneuvered the dress up with her good arm. It hurt, but it was easier than trying to put something over her head. The dress was a dark purple. It was a soft cloth material and was fitted around the bust before becoming looser around the hips and down.

She cradled her arm, she definitely needed to get her shoulder popped back in asap. "Thank god they have handles instead of knobs," she mused as she walked to the door. Using her foot, she pressed down on the handle and the pushed forward, the door swinging open in response.

Stepping into the hallway before the door could brush her, she headed towards the lobby. It probably wasn't the best idea for an injured female demon to ask for help from a bunch of power-crazy male demons, but hey a girl's gotta work with what she's given.

Nearing the lobby, she could sense the energy signal from someone on Team Urameshi. In her pain ridden haze she couldn't pinpoint whose energy signal, but frankly she didn't give a damn. "Just not the red-head. Anyone but the red head, please please please" she quietly prayed.

"Thank god," she sighed instantly spotting orange hair.

The tallest, and dumbest, member of Team Urameshi was returning from a food run clearly. With bags upon bags of chips, sweets, and other unrecognizable food, the stupid grin plastered on his face was extremely welcoming to Bluebell.

"Umm… excuse me, sir" she used the sweetest voice she could muster up, and worked up some fake, albeit convincing, tears in her eyes.

"Wha…" the orange haired man stumbled, nearly crashing to the ground when he caught sight of Bluebell. His face turned nearly as bright as his hair, pointing to himself incredulously. "You're talking to me… right?"

She nodded. "I'm really sorry to ask, but someone dislocated my shoulder badly and I don't know how to fix it. You seem like a tough guy who would know how to help me." she asked, batting her eyes. He was a sucker for women, she just needed to play up her female-ness to get his help. The damsel in distress had not failed her yet!

"Uh… uhh…" he stared, quickly shaking his head to snap out of his dream like state. "I mean, yeah! I know how to fix lots of things… obviously. Uhh… you want me to fix it in the lobby?"

"No, no please not here. The demons here are creepy and seem to like preying upon injured women," she scoffed bitterly, glaring at the few curious gazers. "Can we go outside?"

"Yeah, yeah, of course," he complied, and they quickly exited the building.

Circling around to the side of the building, and away from the lobby, the orange haired man set his bags down. "Ok, Miss, it's gonna hurt a bit, not gonna lie to ya. So just breathe," he said.

He might be one of the dumbest fighters Bluebell had ever seen, but he was a gentle being. She was surprised he even had a will to fight – he seemed more like the "I'm a lover not a fighter" kind of guy.

He had her relax her arm at her side. He then bent her elbow at a 90 degree angle, then rotated the arm and shoulder inward, towards the chest, to make an "L" shape.

"Alright, now make a fist, Miss. This is the painful part, so bear with me," he warned.

She formed a first and grit her teeth. Keeping her upper arm stationary with one hand, and grabbing her wrist with the other he slowly pushed the lower arm outward. Bluebell's face twisted in pain, she wanted to cry out but did NOT want to draw any attention to herself.

Once he had pushed the arm just over 90 degrees past the chest, the shoulder popped right back into place. Immediate relief washed over Bluebell and she couldn't help but laugh and move her arm.

"Thank you so, so much. I was in so much pain!"

"Hehh, no problem lady. Say, how did you manage to hurt yourself so badly anyway?" he asked curiously, scratching his cheek with his index finger.

She pursed her lips. "Ohh, well, I just fell on it awkwardly I don't know why it just dislocated like that," she said quickly.

He narrowed his eyes, it was a sketchy story.

"Anyways, thank you very much. You're a life saver, Kuwabara," Bluebell said before jogging back into the hotel, turning around once to wave goodbye.

* * *

Kurama was lounging on the couches inside the hotel room, a book in hand… though he wasn't reading any of the words. His mind was occupied on the upcoming fight tomorrow. As usual, he was running through a list of possible scenarios and how he would react to each one – he was adamant about being prepared in a fight.

His thoughts were torn away from the fight when Kuwabara in all of his bumbling oafish self burst through the door. "I come bearing gifts!" he called, earning a heated shut up from the napping Yusuke.

Kuwabara flipped him the bird before dropping his snacks on the common room table. "Urameshi, you've been sleeping since we got back from the match you lazy ass!" he yelled, receiving a well aimed pillow to the face.

Grumbling, Kuwabara sat on the couch opposite of Kurama.

Kurama would have returned to his 'reading' but a scent caught his immediate attention. "Kuwabara, who were you just with?" he asked curiously, though he already knew the answer.

"Ohh, some hot chick came up to me in the lobby asking for help. She was about to cry because her shoulder was badly dislocated, so I helped her relocate it. Felt bad for her, when I asked how it happened she gave me bb ntv,some weird story about her falling – like that could dislocate a shoulder that badly. Her shoulder was seriously fucked up, dude. Whatever, and soon as I helped her she thanked me and ran off. Tchh, women, they just can't handle being in my presence for too long – its overwhelming for their hormones… they just go wild, ya know?"

Kuwabara continued on his banter, but Kurama had long zoned out. First she showed him the branding, and now he had other evidence to pointing to the fact that she was in fact in some sort of danger.

Chewing on his lip, he ran various scenarios through his head. What is she was telling the truth, was he expected to do something? She hadn't asked for help, so was she truly just playing around with him? Or was she just trying to get him to be comfortable with her… and if she was, for what purpose was she doing that? Was she trying to find a way to kill him? No, she could have already done so he suspected….

No matter the situation, nothing seemed to match up for Kurama. The only conclusion that he came to was that he didn't think she had ill intentions. Her true motive for meeting with him, however, was still a mystery and it bothered him to no end. He prided himself on reading people, but her motives he simply couldn't figure out

She was in some danger though, that much he knew. Kuwabara was no stranger to injury, and he even said that her injury was not self inflicted or caused by a fall. That lead Kurama to believe that whoever branded her also dislocated her shoulder.

He excused himself, returning to his room. Night had fallen by now and Team Urameshi had a match in the morning… against Dr. Ichigaki's team if he remembered correctly. He laid down in bed, arms behind his bed and green orbs staring up at the ceiling. He was a compassionate and curious soul, and he wanted to find out if the girl was telling the truth about her predicament.

She was certainly an enigma… an enigma supposedly wrapped in a dangerous situation.


	6. The Sinister Plan

The sun had yet to rise when Bluebell was woken up. Glaring sleepily at Karasu, she raised a brow expectantly.

"You need to train. I want two gems today," he explained.

That was it? 'He woke me up to train? I mean, I expected him to do something like this. But why is he going to act like last night didn't happen at all? I'm not expecting an apology, the world would end before he'd ever apologize… but to not acknowledge it at all…' she thought, unsure if she should be grateful that Karasu seemed to have completely forgotten about everything that had transpired.

"Wait, wait wait… two? I can't make two gems in one sitting!" she exclaimed indignantly.

"Stop complaining, it's getting on my nerves," he replied coolly, handing her that energy concoction like last time.

She snatched it from his hand angrily, glaring at him as she drank it. Like before, she had to fight a wave of nausea. Placing the glass on the bedside table she looked to Karasu. "Isn't this usually the time when you perform your disappearing act?" she asked sarcastically.

He scoffed, catching Bluebell by surprise. That was new for her – Karasu usually had three expressions: absolute fury, disturbingly calm, or mildly annoyed.

"I want to see how you do it," he stated simply.

Bluebell pressed her lips together in a fine line, containing her annoyed comment. Fighting with him was the last thing she wanted to do right now. Hopping off of the bed and trotting into the bathroom she grabbed two wash clothes, wrapping her hands in them as she returned to the bedroom – she didn't want to burn herself again.

She sat down on the floor, trying to focus her energy. But focusing in general was proving to be difficult at the moment, she could feel his violet eyes watching her like a hawk. It was unnerving to say the least.

'Ok, ok breathe…' she thought, closing her eyes. She peeked over at Karasu, he was still just silently watching her. 'Ahhh… I can't stand that creep. Seriously, he's the worst thing that has ever happened to me!'

Annoyance and anger welled up in her chest, and she started to get lost in her thoughts. Her breathing deepened, energy swelling about her.

'Ever since he's come into my life, it's been full of anger, fear and pain… I hate him! I hate him!'

Yet again, her energy spiked. An explosion of light engulfed the room. Karasu had to turn his back and cover his face to escape from the blinding light.

Her eyes snapped open, colorless. The colors that swirled about her were dark and angry. She looked at the pulsating ball of energy in front of her and frowned. Grabbing it with both hands, she pulled the putty like material into two about even pieces. Both were a bit smaller than tennis ball.

Placing one on her lap, she set to work on the first energy ball. Working it into a semi-flat circle, she stared at the energy in her palm curiously.

She had never thought much about it before – she only knew that she could make it into gems. But what other properties did it possess. She knew her father had the same manipulation power as her, she needed to speak with him about it. He was capable of conjuring weapons and armor from nowhere. Plus he could craft the most amazing things – statues, fine swords, anything you could think of.

The ability to create large things would come with practice, her powers were increasing with each sitting. But how in the world did he conjure his weapons from thin air?!

She'd figure that out later, preferably when Karasu was not around.

Pinching around the edge of the circle, she turned it into a sun. Admiring her work, she thought of a fiery yellow, and the swirling colors around her melded into one. The energy started to pour into the gem, the center growing yellow and then seeping outward. When it saturated the inner circle she decided to try something new. Placing her index finger onto one spike, she thought of a new color – a sunset orange. The sunset orange then flowed from her finger into the spike. She stopped when it was full, and moved her finger to the next spike. She made quick work of it from there.

Her energy was dwindling, and she still had one more jewel. Her power was exhausting, she needed to finish this last gem quickly.

Setting the sun gem down, and picking up the shapeless energy she formed it into a smooth oval. Picking a soft amethyst, she filled out the smooth oval until with a sudden flash of light, her remaining energy returned to her and she was left with two beautiful gems.

Thank god she had covered her hands, for most of the cloth as well as the carpet had been badly singed.

Karasu straightened up, finally able to uncover his eyes. He had never seen a power like that, so bright that he could do nothing but turn and shield his eyes. And to think she had just began working with her power.

He scooped up the two gems and pocketed them. It had taken his fiancée about half an hour to create these gems, a power as great as hers took time, but he was running late.

Team Urameshi's match with Dr. Ichigaki's team was the first of the day, and the younger Toguro had a sick obsession with them and believed that they would face them in the finals. This had thusly piqued Karasu's interest, and he wanted to see this for himself.

"You need to get dressed now," he said.

"What?" she looked up suddenly, lips pursed, "Why?"

"Because you are MY fiancée," he replied. His dark eyes flashed, there was no room for argument.

Bluebell masked her unease, here were the repercussions of her scheming. While she succeeded in capturing Karasu's attention, now he was watching her like the possessive bastard he was.

"I need to shower and get dressed first though…"

"Fine. The first match is about to start. Get dressed and I will pick you up here after the match is over. No not leave the room," he ended darkly, stalking out through the door.

"Ugh!" she groaned, kicking the bed post. "Only a little while longer…" she reminded herself, massaging her temples. This outing with her fiancée was actually for the best, she could work the situation in her favor.

She needed for Karasu and Kurama to somehow meet. If she could make that happen, then Karasu would recognize Kurama from the scent from last night. And knowing Karasu, he'd make it his personal vendetta to destroy the red-headed demon. Also, she could give Kurama her 'damsel in distress' act while she was with Karasu, and the sympathetic demon would definitely seek her out later.

It was a win-win situation, and she couldn't help but grin as she turned on the shower. As she let the water warm up, she stretched her limbs. She was expecting herself to be more tired after producing two gems, and while she was tired, she wasn't nearly as beat as she was the first few times.

In fact, she still had some energy remaining – very little, but still some. Maybe she could manage to make something small.

Steam filled the bathroom as the water became hot, and Bluebell stepped in the shower. Sitting on the floor, she focused her energy like before.

The steady pitter patter of the water on her back relaxed her, easing her into a steady breathing rhythm. Her breathing grew deeper, and in one final exhale light filled the room.

She sighed, she only had a handful of energy. It wasn't enough to make anything extreme, but perhaps she could try her hand at creating metal. Her father was capable of producing both metal and gems, so she should be able to as well.

The only problem was that she didn't understand metals. For that matter, she didn't really understand minerals either. She just knew that crystals and diamonds were pretty, and understood a few gem's chemical make up. Those were the gems she had been creating inadvertently, she had simply been changing the color.

She stared at the shapeless form of energy in her hand, and she realized that she did not know anything at all about metal – what metals were conductive/not conductive, which ones made good weapons, which ones were shiny, what colors were they?

Nevertheless, she knew how to make diamonds – and she knew that those were hard and could make a decent weapon. So she fashioned the energy into a sharp blade, using her thumb to smooth it to a point that would be sharp once it was filled out. However she didn't have enough energy to make a base for her weapon, it kinda just ended jaggedly. But it was a good start.

Not wanting to use any extra energy, she filled it in clear. When she was finished and she swirling light about her retreated back into her, she remained sitting on the shower floor. She caught her breath, and turned the dagger in her hand. It was the length of her palm, a slender blade made of pure diamond. Testing the point, she pricked her finger, pleased at the immediate spot of blood that was drawn.

It wasn't metal, but it would suffice for now.

Finishing her shower, she towel dried her long blonde hair. She wanted to meet with her father, to ask for advice, so she needed to look the part of an heiress. Changing into a deep blue pencil skirt (she was meeting with her father after all) that hugged her body and a white chiffon cap-sleeve blouse that tied into a bow at the collar.

Slipping on a pair of nude ballet flats, and sliding the makeshift dagger into a carefully placed garter, she exited the hotel. She needed to meet with her father quickly, she didn't know when Karasu would return for her.

As she headed to the stadium, she could feel Kurama's flared energy signal. He was off in the woods, which was curious to Bluebell.

"Shouldn't he be at his match?" she wondered aloud. She could hear loud metallic screeching and clanking coming from the forest. Chewing on her lips she hesitated, wanting to check out what was going on, but needing to quickly meet up with her father.

"Dammit, you'd better be ok, plant boy. I still need you to kill Karasu for me," she muttered, turning and running towards the sponsor's box of the stadium.

* * *

It was just about noon, and Karasu was waiting for Drear. But Drear was late, and Karasu's patience was wearing thin – how dare Drear keep him waiting. Fists clenched he reminded himself to be patient for now – he still needed Drear.

Finally he could sense the ugly demon approaching, a wide grin spread across his dull blue face. Karasu's face remained a calm mask, and he waited until the demon was close enough to draw the four gems out of his coat – the canary star, the perfect diamond, the sun gem and the amethyst oval.

Drear's snake-like vermillion eyes shimmered, but darted back up to meet Karasu's violet ones. "You promised me ten" he hissed, "Are you incapable of counting?!"

A faint smirk twisted the edge of Karasu's lips. "And ten you will get… think of this as a down payment."

He tossed the gems to Drear, who frantically scurried about to catch them. He glared at Karasu, huffing before stuffing them in his pant pockets.

Karasu then handed Drear a small vile.

"What is it?" Drear asked curiously, holding it up to his eye.

"None of your concern. Slip that into his drink. There are six total. After each day I pay you another gem and after the last day you will get your final payment, make sense?" he explained.

Drear nodded.

"Be very careful with that. It will be undetectable to Yarrow, but jostle it around too much and you'll be sorry. Just a fair warning," Karasu warned, a smirk now fully forming on his lips.

Drear licked his lips, staring at the vile apprehensively. But he eventually nodded, placing the vile in a separate pocket inside his servant's uniform. "Good doin' business with ya," Drear said, nodding his head and departing from the Quest heir.

"Definitely the first to go…" he sighed, rubbing his temples. Just being near the filthy demon was enough to give him a massive headache. But Drear's obedience to Karasu marked the beginning to the end of Yarrow.

Inside the little vial were hundreds of microscopic bombs, made by Karasu himself. They had taken him quite a bit of energy to create.

The bombs were set to respond to a very specific energy signal. And until they were triggered, they were programmed to travel down into the consumer's stomach where they would attach and ultimately infiltrate into the stomach lining. From there, they would enter the body's blood stream (for the bombs were created seek blood). They would reside in the blood stream, spreading throughout the whole person's body.

Once detonated, it would be an immediate death. It wouldn't be a long and painful death like Karasu preferred, he did enjoy messing with his prey, but being that his target was Yarrow something quick and efficient was needed.

Six vials of these microscopic bombs would enter his body by the end of the tournament. That would be more than enough to kill him.

And he wouldn't even see it coming.

A smirk twisted his handsome features beneath the mask as he headed back into the stadium to watch the end of the match.

* * *

"Father!" Bluebell cried out ecstatically, throwing herself into her father's arms.

The tall demon embraced his daughter, "Bluebell, what a pleasant surprise. What brings you here?"

Bluebell looked around for anyone who might be eavesdropping, she didn't want anyone prying into her business.

"Dad, I've been keeping this from you, but I've discovered my materialization form."

Yarrow nodded for her to continue.

"And… I inherited yours."

A grin spread across Yarrow's features, "I always knew you would. Why'd you hide it from me, Bell?"

"I… I don't know. I think I wanted to practice on my own for a bit. But I came across a problem, Father… I don't know what to do.."

"Yes…?"

"I don't understand metals. And I also don't understand how you can make your weapons appear out of no where, Father. And I was hoping you could teach me!" she gushed, looking up at her father.

Yarrow's deep laugh rumbled throughout the room, and he patted Bluebell on the head. "You truly are my daughter – I had the exact same problem," he said warmly.

However, his face and tone suddenly became business like.

"I, however, cannot teach you, Bluebell."

Bluebell blinked, her mouth agape. She couldn't believe what she had heard. "B-b-but –"

Yarrow put a finger to his lips, signaling her to be quiet. Bluebell pressed her lips together in a firm line, disappointment painted across her face.

Her father wrote something down, and folded the paper a few times.

"Read this later," he said quietly, handing it to her. "Now, how are things with your fiancée?"

Bluebell held the note tightly in her hand, and frowned. "Great…" she said unenthusiastically.

Yarrow sighed. "Don't act like that Bluebell. He is your fiancée, it is your duty to be a good wife to him."

A frown tugged at Bluebell's lips, but she kept it hidden from her father. "Yes, father, I know," she replied, knowing that arguing with Yarrow was just as bad as arguing with Karasu.

"That's my girl. I love you, Bell… now run along. I have to meet with some other sponsors, all the business talks will certainly bore you!" he laughed.

Bluebell politely laughed before excusing herself. Her firsts tightly balled up as she left. The one thing she hated about her father was that he saw women as the homemakers. They cook, cleaned, raised the children, and made sure the man was happy. It annoyed her to no end. She would most certainly not settle for being a good wife, she would one day run the family business – she had no doubt about it.

As she exited the stadium, she could hear the crowd roaring. Over the loud speakers she could hear the official announcement. "Team Urameshi will receive a medical examination before the next round begins."

"The next match is already starting!" she exclaimed, realizing that Karasu would probably come back for her right around now. She trotted as quickly as she could back to the hotel (it was difficult to move quickly in a pencil skirt).

When she opened the door she was relieved to find that Karasu was not there yet. She tucked the note into a side compartment of her suitcase where no one would look, she'd read it later.

She also wanted to change after her quick jog. Scent stuck to clothes and if she didn't change Karasu would be able to smell that she had been with other demons. She changed into leg hugging black pants, and an equally fitted plain red tank top. Putting on some ankle boots with a slight heel and spritzing herself with some light perfume, she believed she was in the clear. She stuffed the dagger (now wrapped) into her pocket just in case though.

She had changed just in time too, for Karasu entered soon after. "Good, let's go," he said, motioning to the door.

The two walked side by side silently to the stadium. It was so uncomfortable for Bluebell, who kept looking around and fidgeting. Karasu didn't seem to notice or care, preferring the silence.

It wasn't long until they reached the stadium, the screams from the crowd signaling the second round had started. Bluebell started towards the sponsor's box, but Karasu stopped her. Instead motioning towards the normal entrance.

Bluebell grimaced, she didn't want to go in there. It was so much nicer up in the sponsor's box, plus her father was there as well. But Karasu was already entering, and Bluebell fell in step behind him.

When she saw the fight, she nearly tripped in shock. Kurama was not responsive, and being completely pummeled by a overly-muscular man with scars.

"Bakken that's enough! I'm doing the ten count!" the cat lady yelled into her microphone.

Bluebell held in her sigh of relief.

But her relief was short lived, Bakken simply kicked the cat girl out of the ring. He picked up the unconscious Kurama and wound up for the finishing blow.

"No…" Bluebell breathed, stepping forward. He couldn't die now, he just couldn't.

But Bakken stopped, looked to his team captain and then to Urameshi who was poised to kill Bakken if he killed Kurama.

Bakken threw Kurama and the match was over. Kurama had survived.

Karasu had watched her emotional scene unfold, his harsh eyes now watching the unconscious demon. "Why the sudden concern for this red headed demon?" Karasu asked slyly. He was certain that this was the demon she had been with yesterday, her emotional display was enough proof.

Bluebell realized that this was her chance. "N-no. It's just horrible… to beat up someone who is unconscious like that…" she replied hastily, tripping over a word or two.

Bluebell could see the hate in his cold eyes as Karasu turned his gaze to Kurama. She hid her smirk behind a well placed hand. Karasu now had his opponent should Team Urameshi and Team Toguro match up in the finals.

Her eyes travelled back to the handsome red head, who was now awake, his face twisted in pain. A sad frown tugged at her lips, as much as she hated to admit it she didn't like seeing people in pain. It would make business difficult in the future (sometimes you needed to get your hands dirty). But she shook the thought away, turning her attention instead to the match unfolding.

* * *

"Team Urameshi will be advancing to the semi-finals!" Koto announced.

The stands boo'ed, but it didn't seem to faze Team Urameshi. Kurama stood weakly, exiting the stadium with his teammates.

"Are you ok, Kurama?" Yusuke asked.

"Yes, I'll be fine with some rest," the red headed demon assured him. And he definitely would be, it would take more to kill him then a death seed.

The next day, Kurama and Hiei went to watch the match that would determine who Team Urameshi would face. Much to Kurama's chagrin, Team Uratogi defeats the other team in two minutes flat.

Yusuke and the others soon join them.

A huge energy causes the crowd to go wild. Their cheering and screaming catching even the attention of the announcer.

"Oh my gosh… It's Team Toguro! And just listen to the fans go wild!"

Kurama looked up, on the other side of the stadium Team Toguro made their entrance. The younger Toguro, with his brother on his back, stared down Yusuke from behind his dark sunglasses. Then a tall man in heavy armor stepped beside them.

Then Kurama felt his blood run cold, a shiver going down his spine. Out from behind the two brothers was a dark, dark man. With long black hair, a black mast and cold eyes that glared at him, Kurama instantly felt the hate and power radiating off of him.

"Oh wow! You can just feel the tension between the two teams, folks!"

"Their power…" Kuwabara mutters, stunned by the sheer amount of it.

Kurama could only nod, unable to tear his gaze away from this dark man.

The dark man suddenly glanced away, Kurama felt as if he could breath again. But instead of looking elsewhere, he curiously watched the man.

The dark man grabbed someone by the wrist, dragging them out from behind the group.

"Hey, is that their fifth member?" Yusuke asked.

Kurama felt his breath hitch. It was that girl!

She looked scared, too. Her gaze never lifted from the ground, and as Karasu said something in her hear she leaned away from him.

The girl raised her blue eyes, and caught his gaze. A soft, but sad smile graced her lips.

"No way! That's the chick from before I told you about, Kurama!" Kuwabara exclaimed.

"Well, is she the fifth member or is she not the fifth member?" Yusuke asked in annoyance.

"Hmm… I doubt it. She had a dislocated shoulder and didn't know how to fix it. I don't think she fights," Kuwabara explained.

Everything started to make much more sense to the fox demon now. Why she was in trouble and how she had gotten injured.

Kurama looked back to the dark man, who met his gaze with a sadistic smirk. Team Toguro then took their leave, leaving Kurama shaken. Never before had he felt such raw power and hate from one person, it was unsettling. Not to mention, he had discovered a little more about that strange girl. But he wanted to know more, finally acknowledging his interest.

As Kurama and his teammates neared the hotel, he caught a familiar scent. It was hers!

He excused himself from the group.

She was relaxing in one of the benches near the woods (Karasu had gone to meet with Drear so she was allowed some alone time).

When she sensed his energy presence, she stiffened. Her startled blue orbs met his green ones. Kurama expected her to say something, but instead she bolted into the woods.

* * *

Bluebell was relaxing a bit for once, Karasu had run off to some meeting with one of her gems that she had made this morning. She had saved some of her energy though, and had taken Karasu's "recovery" drink and stored it in her bag for later. She wanted to go into the woods and practice more on her own time.

But a familiar energy presence caught her attention. She looked up, shocked to see the red headed demon walking towards her.

Why was he coming to talk to her? She couldn't talk to him now… not after what Karasu had said.

Back on the balcony at the tournament, Karasu had told her that should he smell that demon's scent on her again… he'd blow him apart limb by limb in front of her. And she couldn't have Kurama killed!

So she did the first thing that came to mind, she ran.

* * *

Why was she running? As soon as she ran, he stood there for a moment baffled. Regaining his thoughts he chased after her.

She was decently fast, but not quick enough to outrun a fox. In no time, he had grabbed her by the waist. She jerked out of his grip, and instead tumbled to the ground. Kurama walked to her as she sat up and offered a hand.

Out of reflex she raised her arms in defense, but realized that he was simply trying to help her up. Kurama frowned, why would someone like her have a response like that? Instead of taking his hand, she got up on her own, backing up a step.

"What do you want?" she asked guardedly.

Kurama paused, realizing he wasn't sure. "Answers…" she stated after a moment.

She didn't respond, and he took a step forward. She backed up.

"Are you a part of Team Toguro?"

She shook her head.

"Then why were you with them?"

"I had no choice," she responded.

"Because of the dark man…"

She turned and bolted again while Kurama seemed distracted. But once again, Kurama grabbed her. They both tumbled to the ground, and Kurama pinned her shoulders down.

"Why are you running? One day you come up to me, and tell me about some man who branded you. The next you run as soon as you catch sight of me. I don't understand," Kurama exclaimed.

The girl looked terrified when he pinned her down (he didn't know that the dark man had done the same thing a few days ago). She opened her mouth, and closed it again, unsure of how to respond.

"He… He said that if I talked to you again that he'd kill you," she finally stated.

Kurama stared at her in confusion, before realizing that he was still pinning her. He stood up and dusted himself off.

She stood up, and Kurama felt terrible for chasing her down when she was actually trying to help him. She made to leave after he stood there silently, unsure of what to say. Kurama watched her walk away, conflicting emotions raging inside of him.

"Wait…" he called, jogging forward and reaching for her hand.

He held it tightly, as she turned and tried to wrench her hand free.

"… I don't even know your name…" he said softly.

The girl's eyes widened. "I'm Bluebell," she told him finally, a gentle smile gracing her lips.

"Kurama."

"Kurama… " she sounded his name out slowly.

"Who is that man?" Kurama asked suddenly, feeling her hand tense.

"My fiancée, Karasu."

"Is he powerful?"

"Yes."

"More powerful than me?"

"Very much so…"


	7. The Observer

**Author's Note:**

**Kaori Minamino: Thank you so so much for reviewing! You quite literally made my day =))**

* * *

"There is no way to defeat him then…" Kurama said morosely, after Blubell had explained his powers to Kurama. "I need to see his powers for myself, but if he is as powerful as you described, then I can't see a scenario in which I can beat him."

The fox demon continued his pacing, losing more and more faith with each failed scenario in his head between him and Karasu.

The girl must have sensed his defeatist attitude, for she gently grabbed his hand and stopped Kurama from pacing. The red head looked down at his hand, surprised. Bluebell had been the one to keep her distance from him, not wanting his scent on her – it was Kurama who had to initiate everything.

But she was definitely holding her hand, and his green eyes travelled up to meet her face. A gentle and reassuring smile curving on her lips. "Don't lose hope. There is always a way."

Kurama frowned, tugging his hand away. "I don't understand why I must be the one to face him," his green eyes locked with her blue ones, "maybe Hiei would be better…"

For the first time, Kurama felt the cold grip of fear. No matter how strong he was, the reality that he could die finally struck him. The risk of death was always present in his line of work, but now more so then ever it felt so much more… real.

Karasu was sadistic and overwhelmingly powerful. There was no angle Kurama could use against him… He could not think of one weakness.

It was a matter of brute strength and agility… and if Bluebell's analysis of his powers proved true, Karasu was not only stronger but more agile, too.

It felt impossible. No, right now it was impossible.

Kurama had to sit, unable to focus on standing.

He didn't want to die…

There was so much he still wanted to do…

He didn't want to die…

He could hear something muffled calling out his name. His wide, green eyes finally looked up. Blue eyes and blonde hair silhouetted against the sun, a halo-like effect surrounded her.

"Bluebell…" he said softly, in his moment of weakness he had forgotten that she was still there.

She still had that soft, gentle smile. And from where was sitting she looked like an angel, the most angelic looking demon he had ever seen.

"Hiei would stand no chance against him, Kurama. He is too brash and easily angered. You have more strength than you realize. You're not going to lose," she said confidently.

Kurama stared at her wordlessly for a moment, she was so confident in him. More confident than he was in himself. And if she believed he could do it, then maybe… just maybe he actually did stand a chance.

"I'm sorry, I don't know what came over me," he said after a moment, a tinge of red coloring his cheeks in embarrassment. He had never been so affected by the aspect of death before, it had always been so foreign to him. He didn't mean to break down in front of her, he wished he had been alone (but at the same time he was glad she was there – he couldn't act like this in front of his teammates).

She laughed in response to his apology. "For what?! Being afraid? I'm afraid everyday, I'm the one who has to live with him. You'd be stupid not to be scared."

A smile finally spread across Kurama's handsome features, she had somehow managed to cast his worries away with mere words. In her presence he felt comforted and cared for – unlike most of the stadium, she cared what happened to him.

He stood, brushing the dirt off of his clothes.

"We will find a way, I promise you," she said firmly.

"We? But I thought it was dangerous for us to meet…" he trailed off.

"It is," she said, a small frown formed on Kurama's lips. "But I'll figure out a way to help you."

Without thinking, Kurama swept her into a tight hug, resting his chin on the top of her head. He inhaled the gentle scent of flowers, and wrapped his arms just a bit tighter. "Thank you," he muttered.

* * *

Bluebell was unsure of how to react for a moment, but slowly snaked her arms around his waist. He had always been the means to put an end to Karasu, but she sometimes forgot that he was part human and had feelings. And he was nervous for his soon to be fight between him and Karasu (granted that they got past the semi-finals).

She was used to Karasu and his lack of normal emotions, that to see Kurama struggle with his own… it made her want to protect him.

She nestled her head in his chest, his scent was already on her, it didn't matter now. Sighing she made the mental promise to not let him die.

Pulling out of his embrace, she stepped back. "Go rest, Kurama. You need to survive the semi-finals before we can worry about the finals." When he started to open his mouth to retort she quickly butt in, "I need to get your scent off of me. Go rest, you dolt."

She smiled at him one last time before she proceeded back into the woods. She sensed his presence leaving, and closed her eyes to scan for any other energy signals near her. Sensing none, she made her way to the beach – water usually helped her focus.

But before she practiced her powers, she needed to get rid of Kurama's scent on her.

She reached into her jeans pocket, pulling out the cloth wrapped diamond dagger. Bracing herself, she used the dagger to slice both of her hands. Her face screwed up as blood formed a puddle in each of her hands.

Even though Kurama had touched her, the scent of her own blood on her skin should overpower his. Smearing the blood on her arms and the exposed part of her neck. She waited a minute until she could no longer smell Kurama's earthy scent. Kicking off her shoes and rolling up her jeans carefully she stepped into the water. Bending over she dunked her arms elbow-length into the frigid water. She hissed at the salt water stung her cuts, but quickly splashed water onto her arms and neck until the blood was mostly washed away.

Returning to shore, she grabbed the cloth used to wrap the dagger. Cutting it in half she wrapped both of her hands tightly, ignoring the pain as best as she could.

Once she was all done, she walked towards the woods until sand met the grass. Lying down on the grass, she finally let herself relax. Kurama's scent was gone, though her hands now had an ugly dagger scar to go with the burn.

"I can't relax now… I need to practice," she groaned, forcing herself into a sitting position.

It took her longer this time to access her energy, ignoring the pain of her hands took a while. But she was pleased once she accessed her energy, she had just enough to make a hilt for her dagger and the gem that Karasu requested.

Quickly making a tear shaped red gem for Karasu, the wrapping of her hands protecting her hands from the heat produced from the energy.

Turning to the remaining energy, she made a very thin hilt so that it could fit into her pocket without protruding too obviously. Picking up the dagger she held it up to the shaped energy. She pushed the jagged but flat end of the dagger into the crossguard of the hilt-shaped energy. Since the energy was putty-like, the dagger sunk into the crossguard.

Deciding on a good length for the sharp end of the dagger, she formed the hilt in the same pure crystal as the blade of the dagger.

All of the remaining bits of her energy were sucked up to finish creating the hilt. When she snapped back to reality, she laid down on the grass trying to catch her breath.

Using her last bit of strength she placed the dagger in her small bag, and pulled out Karasu's energy drink that she had saved from earlier. Tipping it into her mouth, she drank it all.

No doubt her energy had probably attracted some attention from nearby demons. No matter how far from the tournament she was, someone had to have noticed her.

Lying down, she tried to recuperate her energy quickly.

But with her keen hearing, the snapping of twigs caught her attention. There was someone nearby.

She was still exhausted and couldn't move quickly. Nonetheless she sat up slowly, her hand snaking into her bag.

"Who's there?" she called, her heart rate spiking. She was vulnerable right now. She was tired and she could see the red staining the wrappings of her hands – too much movement would cause more bleeding.

The footsteps continued, whoever it was had no intention of concealing himself. Out of the woods stepped one of the most daunting men Bluebell had ever seen.

He was dressed in formal military attire. A navy blue coat buttoned all the way to the top, front under the tall collar of his coat (which went up mid-neck) was a stark white shirt collar peeked out. His coat bore gold epaulettes (those shoulder fringe things on military jackets). On his left breast he wore a single badge – red with a gold medal. Inscribed upon the badge was a symbol that Bluebell did not recognize.

Travelling up from his coat, cornflower blue eyes locked with emotionless dark blue-grey ones. His hair was dark brown that faded into grey at his small, neatly trimmed side burns. His hair was short, but had a little length. His face was lined with a few wrinkles on the forehead and around the eyes, but he was still very handsome as his wrinkles made his seem more distinguished. In human years he appeared to be in his mid-forties. (when I imagine him, I think of Russell Crowe as Javert)

Bluebell licked her lips, her mouth going dry. This man's presence was awe inspiring. He commanded absolute attention. But there was something off about him to Bluebell… it was his eyes. They were so devoid of any emotion – it was like he kept them locked up somewhere inside of him. Even Karasu had some emotion (albeit crazy emotions, but emotions).

"Who are you?" she finally asked.

"An observer. For now," he said. His voice was deep and cold.

"What are you observing?"

"You," he replied bluntly, taking Bluebell by surprise. "You have the potential to possess a certain quality that I am looking for. Your plan to indirectly kill your fiancée is very plain for me to see, but I am not an ordinary man. It is clever. You are very interesting."

Bluebell stared at the man, mouth agape. She wasn't sure how to respond – to take it as a compliment or not. The way he spoke was entirely unsettling, it was so cold.

"When you finish developing your powers, find me. I will help you gain more," he said, reaching into his coat and pulling out a black business card and handing it to her.

"But why me?" she asked, taking the card from him.

"You possess and interesting quality."

"You mean my powers," she said, motioning to the gem beside her.

"No. Not that quality. You should really be more aware of your surroundings, your powers have caught the attention of three filthy demons," he stated. If it were possible for his voice to grow colder, it somehow managed to when he spoke the words 'filthy demons'.

"Oh… god," she mumbled, fumbling for her dagger.

"Do not concern yourself with such filth. I have taken care of it, it was just a suggestion. Good day," he excused himself, turning and disappearing into the woods.

"What in the world…" Bluebell mused, the man's presence had entirely disappeared. Her head spun, why was he observing her? And what did he mean when he said he had 'taken care of' the situation? A shiver ran down her spine, she did not want to know.

She looked down at the business card, frowning when she saw that only some statue's location was written on it.

Making sure to not use her hands, she stood up and stepped back into her shoes. Bending down and carefully picking up her bag, she placed the black card in it.

The woods were eerily quiet after that man had left. It was as if nature retreated from him and had yet to return – there were no birds, there was no wind, even the flowers seemed to close ever so slightly.

The smell of blood filled her nose, and she stopped mid-stride.

Should she check it out? Bluebell knew that she shouldn't, but she couldn't help but wonder if that man had anything to do with it. "Of course he did…" she whispered, chided herself for her naivety. He himself had said he'd taken care of it.

She wanted to see what had happened.

Treading softly towards the scent, she made sure to keep aware of her surroundings. But still, she could not sense anything living nearby. The scent of blood grew stronger and stronger.

She stepped into wet earth, her boot making a sick sloshing noise. But why was the earth wet… it was a wooded area, not a marshland. Looking down at her boot, she clamped a hand over her mouth to keep from throwing up. The ground was soaked with blood.

Her eyes slowly started to look up. The small clearing was dyed red.

"Oh my god…" she stammered.

She instantly turned and walked quickly away from the scene. She didn't see anything clearly, but she thought that she might have seen a body against the tree trunk, though she left before she could tell – she couldn't handle that right now.

"Did he do that?!" she asked herself in distress, trying to forget what she had seen.

Death was not a strange thing to her, she had witnessed her father kill many times for the sake of business. But they had done it quickly and cleanly. That back there… she had never seen so much blood in her life.

Shaking the thoughts from her head, she returned to the hotel. The sun was setting, and today left her emotionally and physically drained.

Karasu was in the room already, his violet eyes watching her suspiciously as she entered the room. "Do you have the gem?"

"Huh?" she looked up, not realizing he was there, "Oh yes, I do, I have it…" She reached into her bag and handed it to him.

Karasu took the gem and then grabbed her wrists, pulling her a few steps closer as he inspected her hands. His eyes narrowed at the sight of her own blood covering the wrappings, and they traveled down to her shoes which were covered in another person's blood.

"I smelled some blood in the forest, and I went to go investigate. But I stepped in the blood and I just left, I didn't want to see what had happened. And in my haste I tripped and cut my hand against something," she explained, feeling his inquisitive glare.

His eyes looked up to hers, and she knew that he had seen it too.

"You saw it, too…" she mumbled, watching his reaction. He looked away and nodded, heading into the bathroom. She soon heard the shower running.

A chill ran down her spine, she was thankful that she didn't look. For whatever had happened, it had spooked Karasu and that was no small feat.

She didn't think too long about it, instead she kicked her shoes off and slid underneath the covers. It was somewhat early, but she didn't care – she needed rest. She fell asleep quickly.

* * *

She woke up to the usual pre-dawn routine – make a gem, shower and go back to sleep. By the time she woke up again, Karasu was gone. "Does he ever sleep?" she wondered, trying to picture a time where he was asleep or a time he ever looked sleepy.

Thinking of none, she quickly changed into fitted black pants, a patterned royal blue tank top and a classic clean white coat. Rewrapping her hands, she ran to the stadium.

As she ran into the stadium she could hear Koto announcing excitedly about the start of the semi-finals.

Choosing a seat away from the Shishiwakamaru fan girls, she sat down just as the first dice was rolled – Hiei and Makintaro.

The fight was over in less than a minutes, Hiei stabbed a sword through his skull, ending it. The short man offers to fight again as a 'free space' comes up on the dice. "Kuro Momotaro versus Hiei! And begin~" a blue girl in the ring called, she was new.

"Go Hiei!" someone in the crowd yelled.

Bluebell glanced around her, finding it odd that someone was cheering for the crowd's least favorite team. A few rows down from her were four women – two brunette, and two with odd blue colored hair. They stuck out like sore thumbs – mainly because they weren't Shishiwakamaru fans like every other girl here.

Being among fans of the other team had been making her uncomfortable, she had been getting dirty looks for not boo'ing Hiei earlier.

Standing and moving down a few rows, she could tell that they had all taken notice of her approach.

"You guys fans of Team Urameshi?" she asked, trying to seem as friendly as possible.

"So what if we are? Something wrong with that?" one of the blue haired girls asked cautiously, her pink eyes locking onto hers.

"No, no! It's just that I'm a fan of theirs, too. And sitting in a crowd of opposing fans was getting a bit… awkward," he explained hastily.

"Botan, be nice," a short haired brunette chided her. "You can sit with us if you want, we can all cheer together."

Bluebell smiled, "Thank you. I'm Bell."

After a round of introductions, the group returned their attention to the match. The girls were very boisterous, their cheering annoying the surrounding demons.

A slight smile tugged at the corner of her lips, it reminded her of her friends back home. Her friends before all of this fiancée drama unfolded in her life. Hopefully after this was all over, she could return and things could go back to normal.

Hiei seemed to be struggling, his sword was broken and this Kuro Momotaro guy was claiming that he was entering into his strongest warrior form.

The girls were growing worried, but Bluebell wasn't. She didn't know him, but based on power alone she could sense that Hiei had more power than Kuro… that alone should mean he would end up the winner.

And low and behold, through some quick thinking Hiei came out the winner.

While the girls sighed in relief, Bluebell felt her breath hitch. Kurama was now taking the stage, fighting against some toad named Ura Urishima.

"And begin!" the announcer yelled.

Without a pause, the two were interlocked in a battle of whips. Their weapons moved too fast for the normal eye to see, only the friction caused from the striking of them together was visible.

But it was odd, the two were at a stalemate – neither were winning against the other. It was odd, they both weren't making any progress.

However, Ura Urishima suddenly gained the upper hand. Ura pretended to trip, Kurama went to make the final strike but Ura counter attacked. Lashing out he ensnared Kurama in his fishing wire, cutting him and throwing him in the air. Kurama cried out in pain, landing on the ground painfully. He got up slowly, forcing himself onto his feet to avoid Ura's fishing line whip.

Ura released gas into the arena. It turned out that the fishing wire he had been using as a whip had encased the ring so that none of the gas could escape.

Bluebell quickly made to stand up, wide eyed, but she quickly sat back down hoping that the others didn't notice. But she could feel their questioning stares on her, they didn't miss her slight movement at all.

It had been silent for a few minutes, and Bluebell was anxiously waiting for something to happen. The presence of Kurama had faded into nothing, Bluebells hands balled tightly into fists – starting to reopen her wound. But then another, more powerful presence returned in Kurama's place – it was similar, but still very different.

Energy filled the stadium, but still no one could see past the fog.

"So… are you, like, friends with Kurama?" Botan asked slyly.

Bluebell's head shot up. "What? I mean, no… not really. I've met him a few times, he's very kind."

The girls are shared a smile as Bluebell turned back to the match, oblivious to their smiles.

A sword pierced through the barrier, and the smoke cleared out of the arena. But where was Kurama?

"Is… is that the infamous Youko?" she whispered incredulously.

The cat announcer, Koto, affirmed her belief. "Kurama is the Youko Kurama?" she asked the girls.

"Yupp" Boton quipped cheerfully, "He merged with a human to save himself and BOOM – you have Kurama."

Youko once again reverted back into his human form, revealing the Kurama that Bluebell was used to. He was obviously declared the winner, as his opponent was now dead.

The next fighters stepped up, and the fan girls went wild for Shishi. But Bluebell was not interested in the fight, instead her blue eyes were locked onto the old man. He seemed like he was amused with everything going on.

As Shishiwakamaru unleashed his attacks (Bluebell had not paid attention to the fight in the slightest), the stadium started to evacuate.

"C'mon, Bell!" the girls called for her.

She smiled at the girls, "I'll be fine, don't worry. I'll see you guys soon, maybe.."

They nodded and left the stands, while Bluebell made her way closer to the old man. Sitting down in a remaining pack of spectators, she waited patiently. Patiently as Shishiwakamaru lost to Genkai. Then Kuwabara lost to Onji, then as Onji revealed himself to be the beautiful Suzuka.

Bluebell's eyes narrowed, this was the buffoon who was running the show? How did he get a hold of such powerful items? She would wait patiently until the beautiful Suzuka was alone, she needed to have a little chat with him.

It wasn't long until Genkai pummeled Susuka and Team Urameshi was declared the winners. They would be competing in the finals.

Team Toguro's fight was up next, but Bluebell did not stay to watch it. Instead she followed Suzuka as he was carted off of the arena.

It was a short while until Suzuka woke up, gaining his bearings until his eyes landed on Bluebell. "Why, hello. A fan waiting by my side until I awoke? How flattering and romantic~" he gushed.

"Shut your mouth," she hissed, her eyes flashing dangerously. "Do you know who I am?"

Suzuka shook his head.

Bluebell stood and grabbed the mans hand. Taking a pen, she drew a symbol on his hand before stepping back. She had seen her father do this many times before

Immediately the man's face paled, his mouth opening and closing like a beached fish. He closed his fist tightly. "So you do understand," she said, raising a brow mockingly.

"Yes, yes of course. I apologize for my previous ignorance," he stammered.

A smirk twisted Bluebell's features as a dangerous light shone in her eyes.

"Let's make a deal," she said darkly.

It was time for Bluebell to go into 'business' mode.


End file.
